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Jennifer Lawrence to Reunite with David O. Russell for Abscam Drama

Despite director David O. Russell's occasional on-set tirades, the director is nothing if not loyal to his cast members. The Oscar-nominated filmmaker is up for Best Director at the Oscars for Silver Linings Playbook, and is already set to reunite with star Bradley Cooper on a project he'll next direct formerly known as American Bullshit. His The Fighter star Christian Bale was set to play the lead, was replaced by Jeremy Renner, and then jumped back on in a supporting role. Now Deadline reports Russell's recent collaborator, Best Actress nominee Jennifer Lawrence will play a lead role in the film that still doesn't have a title.

The movie, written by Eric Warren Singer, tells the true story of Abscam, a sting operation in the 1970s and early 80s led by an FBI agent (Cooper) who teams with the world's best con man (Bale) in order to shine a light on corruption in Congress. A New Jersey state assembly leader (Renner) is also in the mix. Adams will play Maxine "Max" Gardner, the mistress and co-conspirator of Bale's character, and Lawrence will play Bale's character's wife, who is presumably unaware of all of his shady deeds.

Lawrence is the latest to sign on, joining Louis C.K. and another of Russell's former The Fighterstars, Amy Adams. It's common for directors to work with the same actors multiple times - just look at Chris Nolan's recent casts, or Russell's former buddy Mark Wahlberg working with Michael Bay - and it looks like Russell is gathering an exceptionally talented group of people that all enjoy making movies together. Lawrence is a wonderful talent and a great addition to the Abscam movie, and it's exciting to think about what projects Russell could organize in the future with these actors in mind for key roles.